You may have noticed a distinct lack of return2ozma. This is due to their admitting, in a public comment, that their engagement here is in bad faith:
I'm sure there will be questions, let me see if I can address the most obvious ones:
- Can I still post negative stuff about Biden?
Absolutely! We have zero interest in running an echo chamber. However, if ALL you're posting is negative, you may want to re-think your priorities. You get out of the world what you put into it and all that.
- Why now?
Presumption of innocence. It may be my own fault, but I do try to think the best of people, and even though they were posting negative articles, they weren't necessarily WRONG. Biden's poll numbers, particularly in minority demographics ARE in the shitter. They are starting to get better, but he still has a hell of a hill to climb.
- Why a 30 day temp ban and not a permanent ban?
The articles return2ozma shared weren't bad, faked, or from some wing-nut bias site like "beforeitsnews.com", they were legitimate articles from established and respected news agencies, pointing out the valid problems Biden faces.
The problem was ONLY posting the negatives, over and over and then openly admitting that dishonest enagement is their purpose.
Had they all been bullshit articles? It would not have taken anywhere near this much time to lay the ban and it would have been permanent.
30 days seems enough time for them to re-think their strategery and come back to engage honestly.
Dude thank God
I won't pretend to know what the fully correct decision on stuff like this is; it's definitely complex bordering on impossible (among other reasons because I actually think it's good to have vocal easily-identifiable bad-faith accounts, because they tee up great conversations even if the original intent behind the post wasn't good and people are annoyed by it).
But that being said it seems crazy that some of these accounts are still allowed to post here freely, given what was in my view some pretty ironclad indication that they're not posting in good faith.
So this touches on one of my key least favorite things about return2ozma -- I'd actually go well beyond what you saw in that one comment from him, and say that at this point, he's clearly not just pointing out valid problems. Posting negative polls is one thing, mostly completely fine. Everyone's got their viewpoint and allowed to post whatever view they want. But he'll also post specific assertions about Biden that objectively aren't true (marijuana policy being a good example), and then continue posting them after it's shown to him that they're not true -- all the while swearing that he's trying to help, just bringing up all this negative information because he really wants the Democrats to win, and so is giving constructive criticism so they can change course.
IDK man. That to me is very clear indication that he's lying about what he's trying to do, and being deliberately dishonest with what he posts. I think the posts I'm referring to were in some meme sub, not here, so maybe what you're saying about the content he posts specifically in !politics@lemmy.world coming technically from reputable sources is a valid counter argument. IDK. Maybe. But to me, avowing "I am trying to help Biden" while posting objectively false criticism of him, and not really pretending it's any other way than that, is actually worse by quite a lot than avowing "I am here to post negative information about Biden." (not that that latter one is good...)
Like I say I'm not trying to weigh in on what the right answer is (either with ozma or the other similar accounts), because I don't really see a good right answer. Just tossing in my observations as a person who doesn't have to take the responsibility of trying to figure out how to handle it.
(@return2ozma@lemmy.world - I feel a little unfair about posting this in a forum where you aren't allowed in to defend yourself; if you want to create a thread anywhere else with any response you want to make, I'll link to it from here so you can give your side of anything where you feel I've been inaccurate / unfair.)
My take is the dude just filled the board with unrelenting misery. I'm happy for the occasional reminder that Biden could be doing better. I think he's flat wrong on certain policies. But oddly enough I still get that point of view without R2O, while enjoying my time here a lot more.
There's that, too, yes.
God, the unrelenting misery is killing me in this platform. I think the thing I'm most sick and tired of more than anything else is the constant stream of The Usual Suspects butting in with "But what about Gaza?!" on Every. Single. Post.
Post an article about Biden proposing a ceasefire agreement in the war? Complain about Biden giving support to Israel!
Post an article about Biden celebrating pride month? Complain about Biden funding Israel!
Article about Biden forgiving another batch of student loans? "BUt Biden supports israel!"
Article about Trump getting convicted of felonies? "But Biden! Gaza! Israel!"
Article about a small town library fighting LGBTQ+ book bans? "GAZA! ISRAEL! BIDEN! BAD"
Article about a goddamn random topic completely unrelated to Biden, Trump, Israel, politics, or the US at all? "GENOCIIIIIIIIIIDE!"
It's at the point where I've cut back on Lemmy usage entirely because every comment thread I click on is like navigating a fucking minefield of misery. Nothing good can ever happen, no policy changes can ever be celebrated, no events can be remarked upon, without someone butting in with a reminder that Genocide Mother-Fucking Joe is personally shoveling coal into the palestinian child incinerator. No post can ever leave you with any emotion other than the thin veil of doomerism settling upon your shoulders, a pall of depression casting itself over the tragedy of the world, and a sense that modern society is an Aristocrats joke that has long since crossed the line from "horrifying" to "funny," then back to "horrifying," then back to "funny," before settling itself so firmly in "horrifying" that the audience is casting nervous glances and hoping that someone else is the first to call the police.
Man, the first thing I did when I joined Lemmy was to develop a policy of blocking anyone that didn't think I would enjoy seeing or interacting with. They didn't have to do anything wrong per se, but if I thought they argued in bad faith or jumped to ad hominem attacks or whatever, I'd block them.
I was worried at first. Some of them were prolific, and I didn't want this place to feel empty. But I've found that I'm spending less time arguing with people who only want to piss me off gives me more time to interact with more thoughtful folks. The responses in turn encourage them to post more. So by blocking people I don't like and encouraging people I do, I think that helps to make the community better as a whole, not even just for me.
Life is too short. I come here to interact with people I enjoy. We don't have to agree, it just has to not be someone who inspires the thought, "not this motherfucker again." Try it. It makes Lemmy so much better.
Good luck, my friend.
Well said. For each article, they’d consistently select the source with the most inflammatory headline and perspective and post it in several places at once, ensuring a clearly negative perception of Biden for casual browsers.
There’s no shortage of criticism of Biden on Lemmy. We should all want the most factual articles posted to support well-informed discussions of his actions.